Gelderland siblings, Amsterdammers rescued in Nepal

Submitted by Janene Pieters on April 30, 2015 - 13:59

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Six Dutch people have been brought to safety in Nepal after the earthquake trapped them in an inhospitable area. Among them are Gelderland siblings Stef and Sofie Steffens. The siblings' parents had telephone contact with their children. NOS has a recording of the call. "Good to year your voices! How are you?" father Steffens asked his son. "It's going well", Stef replies. "It sounds stupid, but we had nothing to complain about where we were. Now were stuck again, but in any case, we are safe."

The six Dutchmen lifted from the valley where they were trapped with a helicopter and are now at an army base in Dhunche. Also among them are Amsterdammers Rosanne van Heeckeren and Fons van den Berg. It is not clear whether Robin van Rooij, the friend that was traveling with the Steffens siblings, is also there. For the time being they cannot travel any further, but they are eager to reach Kathmandu as soon as possible. Their families are trying to arrange with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to have their loved ones picked up from the base as soon as possible. In their phone call, father Steffens told Sofie that they are trying to arrange a helicopter, but Sofie does not dare to get her hopes up yet. "One helicopter? I don't know if that will work", Sofie said. "There are so man people here."